Using technology is ‘an extremely important’ part of optimizing performance, says Cheryl Willberg, competitive triathelete and founder of Toronto-based City Shred. Her wearables can include a wristwatch, a ring, arm patches, shoe clips and chest strap.Thomas Bollmann
By the time competitive triathlete Cheryl Willberg wraps up her weekly 15-hour routine of running, cycling, swimming and weightlifting, she has tracked, analyzed and worked out on an admittedly “embarrassing” number of high-tech devices and exercise machines.
Her arsenal includes a wristwatch, a ring, arm patches, shoe clips and chest strap that monitor heart rate, oxygen saturation, calories burned, stress and sweat levels, blood glucose and hydration levels, sleep quality, cadence, pace and more.
Her smart swim goggles monitor stroke-rate and distance, while handsets provide stroke analytics. On her bike, a tiny computer tracks her wattage output for power-zone workouts, which she can mimic during races. Her running shoe pod offers insights into pacing and efficiency.
Meanwhile, Ms. Willberg’s indoor training involves her smart bike and at times, a treadmill and rowing machine, all powered by apps that immerse her – both visually and physically (with climb and current simulations) – in the world’s best trails and waterways, where she can race with friends and others.
“The more that we can be equipped to know about ourselves, the more we can own our health and fitness.
— Cheryl Willberg, founder, City Shred
Similarly, a smart mirror that has scanned her body lets her lift weights with a holographic, AI-powered personal trainer that provides instant form correction or she can join friends in an energetic virtual fitness class lead by strength-training celebrities.
“Technology makes training and working out fun,” says Ms. Willberg, founder of City Shred, a Toronto-based fitness events company. “It’s your digital accountability buddy, it allows you to see how far you’ve come.”
With access to “really fantastic,” rich data “and the power of AI, you can actually make well-informed, preventative and proactive plans right then and there,” she says “And that’s so empowering. The more that we can be equipped to know about ourselves, the more we can own our health and fitness” – rather than always relying on doctors and experts.
Ms. Willberg’s passion for triathlon is due in part because training for it makes her feel strong, “not just physically but mentally. It keeps me competitive in all areas of life. I create physical goals to prove to myself that I am capable of everything I put my mind to.”
Digital tools that track real-time activity data
As global awareness of the physical and mental benefits of exercise escalates, more people are leveraging technology to elevate their fitness routine. The use of digital fitness tools has increased 30 per cent since 2021, with studies suggesting technology can increase physical activity. Wearables, in particular, can empower individuals to take greater responsibility for their health.
Cheryl Willberg uses a smart bike for indoor training.Thomas Bollmann
Dr. Christopher Napier, assistant professor of Biomedical Physiology and Kinesiology at Vancouver’s Simon Fraser University, and research lead at the university’s WearTech Labs, says some of the devices favoured by Ms. Willberg, “can monitor things that were previously only analyzed in research labs.”
With some apps now collecting blood, saliva and even urine samples, Dr. Napier says algorithms aimed to help people with their diet and workouts are becoming more fine-tuned.
Inside Tracker, for example, turns blood, DNA and wearable data into personalized insights, like testosterone and hemoglobin levels. It also provides advice to improve tailored workout metrics – like eating more fiber to combat lower than normal deep sleep or getting 10 minutes of morning sun daily to increase bone strength.
Dr. Napier says AI-driven devices can offer “potentially better” fitness and health recommendations than a typical gym trainer. Even he’s been aced by technology.
Plantiga is an AI-powered sensor that fits directly into a pair of shoes as an insole. Used by professional athletes, the sensor replaces cumbersome lab equipment to track movement asymmetries, such as favouring one foot, which, when corrected with exercises, can improve performance or mitigate injury.
Dr. Napier, a national-level, middle-distance competitive runner, was wearing the device for research while training for a race when he noticed pain in his shin. “When I looked at my Plantiga data, I could see asymmetry had occurred before I started noticing that pain,” he says. “That was exciting because it meant Plantiga detected the problem first.”
Plantiga Technologies, which is based in Vancouver, plans to launch an “AI movement coach,” able to instantly alert users to such deviations and recommend correctives, says Quinn Sandler, company co-founder and CEO.
“The data was there but no trigger to say, ‘Hey, Chris Napier, your left limb is off and you might be injured soon. Here’s what you should do.’”
“Fast forward three to five years,” adds Mr. Sandler, “and with our sensors and digital movement coach, we want to enable millions of people all over the world, from the elderly to the young and athletic, to measure and improve movement health, which is a vital sign for how humans operate.”
Upper-body strength training
While Plantiga monitors virtually everything to do with legs, Train Fitness claims to be the world’s first app that can track arm movement to automatically log strength-training exercises – everything, including bicep curls, push-ups, sit-ups, squats, bench presses, deadlifts and 200 more.
With integrated social feed, AI-driven tailored workouts and AI coach, Train Fitness focuses on strength training, says Andrew Just, founder and CEO of the Toronto-based startup.
Plantiga’s insole sensor tracks leg and foot movement asymmetries.Supplied
Currently included in Apple Watch’s coveted “Top App” list, the Train app uses a proprietary technology, called Neural Kinetic Profiling, to create digital signatures of physical activity, explains Mr. Just.
(In casual experiments, Train Fitness can also detect whether one’s arms are driving, hammering a nail or cooking, and, with “94-per-cent accuracy,” even what’s cooking, says Mr. Just, adding, “the bridge between the physical and digital world is narrowing.”)
Strength training has become a popular way to stay fit, says Mr. Just. “It’s not just about running and other cardiovascular exercises. Anaerobic activity is very powerful and it does wonders for the body and health. You can lose weight [by] lifting weights. I want to give that to everyone.”
Lifting heavy weights, however, requires specialized knowledge – and Mr. Just is adamant that Train Fitness’s AI coach can provide safe workouts, even for those new to weightlifting.
“Is AI safe enough? My honest answer is yes,” he says.
“Strength training is a perfect use-case for machine learning because it’s all about progressive overload,” which requires a data-driven management model, “and machine learning does this very well.”
Critics contend fitness device use risks over-reliance at the expense of agency. Dr. Napier and Ms. Willberg are both quick to caution that when technology drives one’s fitness routine, “you can neglect your own internal signals in favour of what the tech is telling you,” says Dr. Napier.
Ms. Willberg worries about users, “who feel guilty about not being on track even though there are great reasons for a change of programming, including getting a new job, prioritizing family time, injury, or just simply taking a break so you can come back stronger.”
“Technology is a great piece of the puzzle,” she says, “but it’s not the entire puzzle.”
